Several Louisiana artists are inlcuded in the annual Blues Awards that are awarded each year by the Blues Foundation.  The Blues Foundation  produces the annual Blues Music Awards, which will be presented this year at the Cook Convention Center in downtown Memphis, Tennessee on Thursday, May 8, 2014. The Blues Music Awards, now in their 35th year, are universally recognized as the highest accolade afforded musicians and songwriters in Blues music. The annual Blues Music Awards ceremony is the premier event for Blues professionals, musicians, and fans from all over the world. The focus of this celebration is to recognize superior achievements in Blues performance, songwriting, and recording while honoring a rich cultural tradition.  Leading the list of nominees for the 35th Blues Music Awards from Louisiana are Buddy Guy, with four, and Bobby Rush garnered three nominations.

Bobby Rush

Nominees hailing from Louisiana are:

B.B. King Entertainer
Bobby Rush
Buddy Guy

Contemporary Blues Album
Rhythm & Blues – Buddy Guy
Magic Honey – Cyril Neville

Contemporary Blues Male Artist
Buddy Guy
Johnny Sansone

Best Blues Saxophone
Jimmy Carpenter

DVD
Ruf Records – Songs from the Road (Royal Southern Brotherhood)

Historical
The Jewel/Paula Blues Story (Various Artists) – Fuel Records

Pinetop Perkins Piano Player
Marcia Ball

Song
“The Night the Pie Factory Burned Down” – Johnny Sansone

Soul Blues Album
Down In Louisiana – Bobby Rush

Soul Blues Female Artist
Irma Thomas

Soul Blues Male Artist

Bobby Rush

Also announced were the “Keeping The Blues Alive awards, which honor those who are dedicated to keeping the traditions of Blues alive. OffBeat Magazine was a recipient of one of these awards in 2005. The 2014 Keeping the Blues Alive Awards recipient in Louisiana is journalist/photographer Gene Tomko, from Lafayette, Louisiana. The complete list of 35th Blues Music Award nominees is here.

Tickets for the Award show go on sale December 16. Blues Foundation members are the only fans who vote to decide which nominees will actually take home the Blues Music Award.